The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1887-10-07

Cbil6AlL CtF60F q CSOFOteDCs Il very Otu
kind of robbery. consisting in violently
running against a person and profting
from his confusion by picking his peck
cts. He seldom frequents the races or
crowded stores, but may be seen at the
banks, where he watches persons that
draw money and sees into which
pocket they put it. The Germans also
excel in the vol az rddi71, which consists
in prOfting from the momentary mat
tentiOn of a cashier TO make off with his
money.
"The italian pickpocket knows his
extreme cleverness. Heis conscious Of
his superiority. and he laughs at every
European police force. He boldly re-
peats his robberies ut the same locality.
| although aware that complaints have
awakened the attention of the police.
Full of confidence in his art, and enjoy
ing his triumphs, he ends, however, by
falling into their hands. If he had the
prudence of the English pickpoclIet he
could defy all detectives of the uni
verse. He is the artist of pickpockets,
but, yielding to his southern ardor, he
is caught by his obstinate presence in
| the same crowd. He never abandons a
| favorite place until he has stolen all
that he can possibly steal. In an inter-
national reunion of pickpockets he
would be unanimously chosen presi-
/ dent. When he has thrown his eye on
/ a pocket, his address defies all cOmpe-
/ ton. By a movement so natural that
| it escapes notice he feels of a pocket,
weighs a purse, and appropriates it
with the greatest dexterity. When en-
/ gagged at his work he often purposely
| excites the attention of his victim by a
slight and apparently accidental touch,
which permits him to present his ex-
! cuses in most amiable and gracious
| manner. In point of dexterity the
/ Spaniard is his rival. He operates I'M
ostentatiously, with suppleness and
! lightness of hand, but his movements are
not stamped with that charming grace
the secret of which the Italian alone
possesses.
! 1.-The pickpOcket never wears a glove
on his right hand, and to conceal his
movements he frequently carries a
| light overcoat on his left arm. In
winter an Overcoat on the arm would
excite suspicion, and hence he carries
then a large handkerchief, which he
/ pretends to unfold to put around his
neck. At churches, balls, cafes, thea
tiers, the hat takes the place of the
overcoat and handkerchief. In the
slang of these malefactors, he who
takes the purse is called the main
| (hand). The aids are called raon15eS.
They are the pupils, the accomplices.
They must place themselves between u
main and the crowd for the further Sc
curity of the former. 1t is their bust
| ness to look out for the detectives and
TO dispose of the victim in the way most
convenient for le ndi9l-whether by
elbowing and jostling him more or less
| vigorously or by attracting his atten-
ton from the operator. The latter, in
order to conceal his right hand, raises
his left arm, on which rests his over
coat, so that the overcoat covers the
pocket that he intends to explore.
| What precautions, what delicacy and
! lightness of touch he must employ, to
come off successfully! Two fingers
only are introduced into the pocket.
Lightly they raise the pocket-boOk,
| which for an instant is held suspended
so that its owner shall not feel the
| sudden tightening of his pocket. Al
this moment the aOnge, who is behind,
pushes the victim slightly, when the
latter, turning about, ceases to see and
to feel what is going on. If the sun
to be stolen is large, the pickpocke'
often maneuvers n long time with hi.
victim. He quits him, finds him again
and never abandons him until he ha.
got his money, unless, his eagernes
overcoming his ordinary prudence, HI
is detected. In this case the nome
come to his aid and endeavor to ge
him off before the arrival of tn,
police, in which effort they usual,
| succeed. An experienced detecuv,
is not satisfied with arresting tn
main; he wants the accomplices. Thi,
is why the main passes the stolel
articles to the first nome, who passe
them to the second, and so on to tn
last of the band. This action is doubly
advantageous to the main. Surprise,
by his victim, he has nothing on him
and that permits him to protest his in
nocence with vehement Indignation. /
the main is arrested by an inexperi
enced agent of police, his protestation
are usually successful, for nothin;
compromising is found on his person
and the agent is afraid of making
mistake.
"How many robberies of this kline
are committed in Paris dailyP"
-Four or five hundred At least two
thirds of them go UNPUBLISHED. Their
are pickpockets everywhere. A coupI
of weeks ago, at the Wedding of tn
J niece of the Minister of the Interior,
rascal in full dress and with the appear
ance of a gentleman picked a dOzei
pockets. BY the barest accident h
was arrested. Two detectives that hap
J pened to be passing saw him throw
{ something into a cellar window.
pocket-book struck one of the bars O
the window and bounded back upol
the pavement. The fellow was arreste,
and taken to the station, where owe
10000 francs were found upon his per
son. In the cellar. which had not bee
: used for a long time, were found nor
than $50 pocket-boOks.
T The ruses these rascals often EN-
ploy are exceedingly shrewd. An oil
) pickpocket, with whom l have ha
; some dealings, told me n story, no
long ago. about a magistrate in tn
provinces who thought himself alto
gether too smart for pickpockets. 'Yor
need, he said, ito take only few YER
b. simple precautions to battle them com
a pletely. always put my pocket-boo
p into double pocket that my wife Ia
1 made between my vest and my shirt
J With my overcoat bUttoned from top &